Jonathan and his family live in a gray stone farmhouse at the foot of Hemlock Mountain. Jonathan's mother is a good cook, and so Jonathan's aunts and uncles always come to their house to have dinner. Coming up will be a big celebration and Jonathan's mother is going to make a big stew for the relatives. So, she asks Jonathan to go to Aunt Emma to borrow a big iron pot.

Aunt Emma lives on the other side of Hemlock Mountain, and therefore, Jonathan has to go over the mountain alone to find his aunt. Although his mother tells him that there are no bears on Hemlock Mountain, his young uncle James said that he had seen bears on the mountain before.

Will Jonathan meet the bears on Hemlock Mountain? Will he be dangerous alone on the mountain?